How To Build a Culture of Continuous Improvement
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How To Build a Culture of Continuous Improvement

BySonya Shelton

Organizations can always improve something. Nothing is ever flawless, no matter how much we wish it could be. If you accept this reality, you can help your team create an environment of continuous improvement. When we accept that flaws exist, we provide the freedom to focus on improvement. When someone makes a mistake, correct it and continue on toward your objectives. Encourage…

Effective Leaders Foster Open Communication
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Effective Leaders Foster Open Communication

BySonya Shelton

As a leader, you want your team to follow you. To follow you, they need to trust you. To trust you, they need to believe what you say, and they want to know you care. It’s even better when you trust them too. Part of developing that trust, respect, and rapport you need to lead is open communication. It doesn’t just…

Growing Fast? Here’s What’s Likely To Kill Your Company
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Growing Fast? Here’s What’s Likely To Kill Your Company

BySonya Shelton

If your goal is to grow your business fast, you need a positive cash flow cycle or the ability to raise money at a feverish pace. Anything less and you will quickly grow yourself out of business. A positive cash flow cycle simply means you get paid before you have to pay others. A negative…

Have you fallen into The Mile Wide Trap?
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Have you fallen into The Mile Wide Trap?

BySonya Shelton

If your company’s revenue has stalled after a period of rapid growth, you may have fallen into The Mile Wide Trap. Consider the case of Kim (not her real name) who runs a public relations firm. Kim studied marketing at school and went on to work for a big advertising agency where she spent ten…

Why Bother Doing It the Hard Way?
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Why Bother Doing It the Hard Way?

BySonya Shelton

Whether you want to sell your business next year or a decade from now, you will have two basic options for an external sale: the financial or the strategic buyer. The Financial Buyer The financial buyer is buying the rights to your future profit stream, so the more profitable your business is expected to be,…

Thinking Vs. Doing: The Owner’s Dilemma
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Thinking Vs. Doing: The Owner’s Dilemma

BySonya Shelton

There’s a steady breeze from the northwest, which cools the warm Caribbean afternoon. Framed between a palm tree and the turquoise water, you notice a man reading. He appears to be working, which seems strange given his appearance: shaggy blonde hair, linen shirt, surf shorts and flip-flops. You squint and realize the man is Richard…

The Power of Consistent Evaluation
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The Power of Consistent Evaluation

BySonya Shelton

Evaluate every aspect of your organization on a regular basis. To ensure focus, productivity, efficiency, and successful results, everything from your people to your processes to your systems to your priorities to your projects needs to be consistently evaluated. Think of it like giving your organization a regular check-up to make sure it’s performing at an optimal level. Many executives focus on…

How Three Moves Quadrupled the Value of this Business
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How Three Moves Quadrupled the Value of this Business

BySonya Shelton

Are you stuck trying to figure out how to create some recurring revenue for your business? You know those automatic sales will make your business more valuable and predictable, but the secret to transforming your company is to think less about what’s in it for you and more about coming up with a reason for…

3 Steps to Solve Problems More Effectively
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3 Steps to Solve Problems More Effectively

BySonya Shelton

You can tell the effectiveness of a leader by the size of the problems they tackle. More responsibility brings greater problems and bigger decisions. If the problem was easy to solve, someone else would have already solved it. As a leader, you already understand the value of solving problems. Now it’s up to you to help others solve problems more effectively….